Insider Selling: The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) EVP Sells 151 Shares of Stock

The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE:THG) EVP Jeffrey M. Farber sold 151 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.01, for a total value of $22,651.51. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 85,590 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,839,355.90. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

The Hanover Insurance Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE THG traded up $1.99 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $149.71. 176,607 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 173,634. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.57 and a beta of 0.69. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $112.22 and a 52 week high of $151.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.40 and a quick ratio of 0.40. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $142.83 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $134.63.

The Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The insurance provider reported $1.88 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.88. The company had revenue of $1.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.49 billion. The Hanover Insurance Group had a return on equity of 12.42% and a net margin of 4.44%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($1.91) EPS. Analysts predict that The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. will post 10.99 EPS for the current year.

The Hanover Insurance Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th were paid a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.27%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 13th. The Hanover Insurance Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 76.23%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On The Hanover Insurance Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC raised its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 2,227 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $303,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC raised its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 8.7% in the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,336 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $168,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 35.4% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 417 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $62,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 20.7% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 753 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $103,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares during the period. Finally, Pullen Investment Management LLC raised its stake in The Hanover Insurance Group by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. Pullen Investment Management LLC now owns 4,434 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $556,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares during the period. 86.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on THG shares. Bank of America increased their price target on The Hanover Insurance Group from $158.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on The Hanover Insurance Group from $147.00 to $162.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on The Hanover Insurance Group from $142.00 to $144.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $160.00 price target on shares of The Hanover Insurance Group in a research report on Tuesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $160.20.

About The Hanover Insurance Group

The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides various property and casualty insurance products and services in the United States. The company operates through four segments: Core Commercial, Specialty, Personal Lines, and Other. The Commercial Lines segment offers commercial multiple peril, commercial automobile, workers' compensation, and other commercial lines coverage.